What to keep in mind during business dealings?

If we owe money to someone in business, meaning we have borrowed money from someone and have to repay that debt. Or, if we are a creditor, meaning we have lent money to someone and have to collect that money. This section provides a precise understanding of what our conduct should be in both these situations so that our business dealings are ethical.

Conduct as a Debtor

Money is like the eleventh life support. Everyone holds their money dear. In business, when we borrow someone's money and don't pay it back, the other person feels a lot of pain. Therefore, we must maintain a single intention that no one should feel even the slightest pain because of us. We must decide from the very beginning that our actions shouldn’t cause anyone to lose money, and if by chance we do lose their money, we must return it at any cost. It's not an issue if there is a loss in the business, but we must keep our intention pure to repay the debt of the person whose money we've taken. Our goal should always remain the same-that I have to pay back every single penny. This is the first step towards trustworthy dealings with debtors and creditors.

These days, if a business suffers a loss, people hide millions of rupees and then declare bankruptcy. That is, they ruin the business by defaulting on debts, and this is considered a very bad thing. If we live peacefully after withholding someone's money, and the person who lost the money is suffering, that ruins our infinite future lifetimes. Therefore, we should absolutely not have the intention to embezzle anyone's money. It is not an issue if our wealth remains with someone else, but someone else's wealth shouldn't remain with us.

Param Pujya Dadashri says that you should keep this goal in mind and then play the game of business, but don't become a player. If you become a player, you're finished! A player is someone who borrows five lakhs from one party in business. Then borrows ten lakhs from a second party, and from that, pays five lakhs to a previous lender. Then, they borrow from a third party to pay off the second one. In this way, they keep spinning tricks of the intellect, but eventually, they accumulate a huge debt and are forced to cry out in distress.

The rule is that the moment we take someone's money, we must decide, I have to return this money, and only then should it be taken. Our intention should be to repay the debt as quickly as possible; then, if circumstances cause a delay, it is not an issue, but we must not allow our intention to be corrupted. When we face a difficulty in business and are unable to repay the money, we must only look at whether our intention is pure or not. The thought, "If I had all the money today, I would return it immediately!" is called a pure intention. If this intention remains pure, the money will definitely be repaid; there's no need to worry after that. If the intention doesn't remain pure, the money will not be repaid. This is a universal business dealings rule to follow while handling debtors and creditors.

Conduct as a Lender

Debtor management may seem challenging. If we have given money to someone and they’re not paying us back, should we try to get it back, or should we be content, sit back and think that it's our karmic account? To this Param Pujya Dadashri answers that, “You  have to make the necessary efforts. You can tell him: ‘At the moment I am a little short of cash, if you have the money, can you please make arrangements to send it to me?’ Speak to him with respect and discretion and if the money does not come then understand that you have settled some past account with him. But if you don’t even make the effort, he will take you for a fool and he will go on the wrong track.” The amount of courtesy one shows when they have to take money from us is the same amount of courtesy we should show when taking money back from someone.

When making a collection of our dues, we should set our inner understanding in such a way that it doesn't cause us any worry. If one day we have a doubt and a thought occurs, "What if this person doesn't pay back the money?" then our mind will start becoming weak. After lending money to someone, one should assume that it's as if the money has been given by tying it in a black rag and tossing it into the ocean. Thus, give the money without expecting it to come back, or don't give it at all. To hope for the money to return after giving it, and then to worry if it doesn't, is foolishness.

As one of the best practices for business dealings, one should make sahaj (natural) efforts to recover the money given to someone. We shouldn't keep making endless trips, like setting out at ten in the morning to collect the money but if the person isn't there, then going again at twelve but still not finding them, and then coming home only to go out again at one thirty. If we are collecting debt over the phone these days, we shouldn't call every two hours. A sahaj effort means going there once, and even if you don't find the person, you shouldn't worry about it again. After a few days, you can go again or call. If our efforts are sahaj, it may often happen that we went and didn't find the person, but as we're returning, they run into us and our work is done.

Param Pujya Dadashri says that, “When  after making several attempts to collect your money, you are finally promised that you will have your money by the end of the month, at that time if there is no reaction on your part (your internal state is in equanimity), then that money will come to your home. But you have reactions, do you not? Does your internal state not change? From within you feel: ‘This person is senseless, he is worthless, he makes me run around’ Do you not feel this way? So when you go back to him, he curses you. It is because of changes in your internal state that the other person treats you in this manner.”

When money isn't repaid on time, if we set up the understanding that "Whatever has happened is justice!”, the intellect’s inner lamentation will stop first and foremost. If we have faith in the correct understanding, then we won't get angry at the person, won't feel agitation, and won't worry day and night. After that, in the practical world, we should go for the collection and fulfill the worldly obligations completely. When you meet the person, you should say playfully, "I called you four times and couldn't reach you, and today, either I'm lucky or you’re lucky, since we finally met! Currently, I am in great difficulty. If you don't have the money yourself, please arrange to get the money for me, even by borrowing from someone else." Find a solution by talking things through from different angles. If we have a practical conversation with humility, without getting angry, then our task will get done.

If the money is eventually repaid, you should seat the person who returned it, offer them tea and snacks, and say, "I must acknowledge your favour that you came and gave the money back; otherwise, in this day and age, people don’t usually give it back." And if someone says they won't be able to pay the interest, tell them, "Just bringing back the principal amount is enough!" The person who took the money is unhappy about having to give it back, and the person who gave it is unhappy about having to take it back. Neither of the two is happy; this world is that strange. These are the ways our conversations in business dealings should be!

When the intention of the person we've given money to changes and they back out of their promise to pay, we try to recover the money by taking the help of the law. Despite those efforts, if our money still doesn't come into our hands, we should understand that that person's intention has turned bad. In the future, when they are found guilty in nature's justice, they will suffer greatly. At that time, we must pray to God, "Oh God! Grant this person the right intellect." If the person doesn't repay our money, justice will then take place in nature's court, and along with a high interest, they will have to repay an amount many times over. This is because the laws of humans can be broken, but no one can break the law of nature.

In short, if we have borrowed money from someone, then with a pure heart and pure intention, we must make every effort to return it. Conversely, if someone has borrowed money from us and is not returning it, we should make practical efforts to recover the money with complete humility, and if it isn't returned, we shouldn't become unhappy.